A Metal Snap Button Hid in a Teen’s Nose for Over a Decade Until Orthodontic Scans Spotted It

Bay Area Heat Advisory Extended to Thursday as Inland Highs Near 105 and Ozone Raises Heart, Lung RisksBay Area heat advisory runs to 10 p.m. Thursday, with inland highs near 105. An ozone alert adds risk for heart and lung patients, kids, and seniors. Surprise Medical Bill Protections Still Shield Patients as Insurers and Doctors Battle Over 7 Million Payment DisputesInsurers and doctors are fighting over payments, but No Surprises Act rights still apply. Here is how to spot and report an illegal surprise bill. Texas Attorney General Probes UnitedHealth Over Allegations It Paid Nursing Homes to Delay Hospital Care for PatientsTexas AG Ken Paxton issued civil investigative demands to UnitedHealth over allegations that it paid nursing homes to delay hospital transfers. FTC Warns 24 Health Care Companies That Price Quotes Omitting Doctor or Facility Fees May Break Federal LawThe FTC warned 24 large health care companies that leaving doctor or facility fees out of price quotes may be deceptive. What patients should know. Mental Health Man Checked Himself Into a Psychiatric Hospital Three Times on Zolpidem and Remembered None of ItA 44-year-old man woke up in a psychiatric hospital three times with no memory of admitting himself. Doctors traced it to his zolpidem pill. A Teen’s Ankle Sore Washed Off with Water, Revealing a Marker Drawing and Hidden Exam StressA 17-year-old’s dark ankle sore was rinsed off as doctors prepared an ECG. Athens doctors traced the marker drawing to examine stress and low mood. A Man Whistled a John Denver Hit While Partly Asleep, Kept the Beat, and Remembered NothingA 30-year-old man whistled “Take Me Home, Country Roads” during a partial arousal from deep sleep, swaying in time, then forgot it all. Magnolia Woman Admits Billing Medicaid $477,872 for Therapy Never Given and Misusing a Nurse Practitioner’s IdentityA Magnolia, Texas, woman pleaded guilty to billing Medicaid for fake therapy with a nurse practitioner’s ID. Here is how to spot and report fraud. Innovation Nobel Prize for Optogenetics Spotlights Depression and Parkinson’s Research in Mice, but No Approved Human Treatment ExistsThe 2026 Nobel Prize honors optogenetics. Here is what the brain research means for depression and Parkinson’s patients, and what it does not. Six Physician Groups Push Back After RFK Jr. Says AI Gives Better-Informed Second Opinions Than Any DoctorSix physician groups say AI is not better informed than doctors after RFK Jr.’s summit remarks. Here is how to use AI chatbots safely and with care. A Neurologist Couldn’t Stop Rhyming After Strokes and Seizures, So He Took Up Freestyle RapAfter strokes and seizures, a neurologist felt an urge to rhyme that led him to freestyle rap. New brain mapping puts his cerebellum in a new light. Zap One Brain Network and People Laugh Without Feeling Any JoyA 2026 review maps two laughter networks in the brain, one that brings real mirth and one that makes people laugh without any joy at all. Healthy Living Isaiah Washington Reveals Wife Jenisa Died of a Hemorrhagic Stroke, Urging Families to Take Severe Headaches SeriouslyIsaiah Washington says his wife, Jenisa, died of a massive hemorrhagic stroke. Here is why a sudden, severe headache can be a 911 emergency. Soy-Allergic Shoppers in Cincinnati, Dayton and Northern Kentucky Should Check Freezers for Recalled Saint Francis Apizza PizzasSaint Francis Apizza recalled four frozen pizzas sold in Cincinnati, Dayton, and Northern Kentucky over undeclared soy. See stores and refund steps. Monongalia County Investigates 16 Lab-Confirmed Salmonella Cases Near Morgantown, with Several Hospitalized and No Source Found YetMon County health officials are tracing 16 lab-confirmed Salmonella cases near Morgantown. See the symptoms to watch for and when to call a doctor. Pediatricians Tell Pregnant Women and Parents of Young Children to Skip Raw Milk, Citing Listeria and Bird FluNew AAP policy says raw milk is unsafe for pregnant women and young kids, citing Listeria, E. coli, and H5N1 bird flu. Here is what parents should know. Covid – 19 FDA Proposes Requiring Companies to Report Food Additives That Now Reach Grocery Shelves Without Federal ReviewFDA has released its proposed GRAS rule requiring companies to notify the agency about food additives. Here is what the proposal does and does not do. Federal Regulators Warn Some Hair Dryer Brushes Lack the Part That Stops ElectrocutionCPSC warns hair dryer brushes sold on Walmart.com and TikTok Shop lack immersion protection. The seller has not agreed to a recall or refund. A Recalled Teething Toy Broke the Pattern Parents Were Told to Look ForA newly recalled pull-string teething toy has a different model number and design from earlier recalls, and one choking incident has been reported. Trying to Lower Blood Sugar, Cholesterol or Blood Pressure? Different Workouts Suited Different MarkersA pooled analysis of 53 trials found that different exercise types helped different metabolic markers. Most of the evidence was low certainty. Editorial Illustration via AI Share on Twitter Share on Facebook Share on Pocket A 17-year-old boy went in for dental imaging to plan orthodontic treatment and came away with an unexpected diagnosis: a metal snap button, about 1 centimeter across, had been sitting inside his nose for more than 10 years. He had no nasal symptoms at all.

Ear, nose and throat specialists at Ad Diriyah Hospital and King Saud University in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, described the case in a report published in March 2025 in the International Journal of Surgery Case Reports. The paper’s title calls it a “decades-long journey,” but the timeline in the case itself spans roughly one decade, from age 7 to 17.

What makes the case stand out is not that a child put something up his nose. That happens all the time. It is that the object stayed put, unnoticed, through most of his childhood without causing the blockage, bleeding, or foul-smelling discharge that usually gives these objects away. The teen denied any history of nasal obstruction, runny nose, nosebleeds, bad odor, facial pain, or sleep problems.

The backstory came out once the button was found. The boy had pushed the object into his nose when he was 7. His parents took him to a doctor, who tried to look inside the nostril but could not complete the exam because the child would not cooperate. No imaging was done.

The physician recommended removing the object under sedation. The family did not follow up, the authors wrote, and because the child had no symptoms, they assumed the object had fallen out on its own.

It had not. The button was lodged on the floor of the right nasal cavity, tucked beneath the inferior turbinate, one of the curled, bony ridges along the inside wall of the nose. There it stayed for years as the boy grew into his teens.

The button surfaced only because the teen needed dental imaging for orthodontic planning. Dental X-rays and cone beam computed tomography (CBCT), a 3D X-ray scan used by dental professionals to image the teeth, jaws, and face, showed a round, dense object along the floor of the nasal cavity.

Follow-up front and side X-rays revealed a circular object consistent with a metal snap button. The CBCT scan confirmed it and showed mild inflammation around it, but no damage to the surrounding bone and no involvement of the sinuses, the authors reported.

When the specialists looked inside with an endoscope, they found a deviated septum and an enlarged turbinate on that side. The lining of the nose looked red and slightly swollen. The object, partly covered with mucus and possibly some crusted material, had a shiny appearance and was stuck to the nasal floor rather than sitting loose.

The authors argue the case shows that dentists can help catch these hidden objects. Because dental and orthodontic imaging often captures the nasal region, they described dental professionals as “key contributors to early detection of asymptomatic NFBs,” using the abbreviation for nasal foreign bodies.

Objects left in the nose for long periods can become the core of a rhinolith, a stone-like mass that builds up as minerals collect around the foreign body. The NIH-hosted StatPearls review on nasal foreign bodies notes that organic objects in particular tend to absorb water, swell, and harden this way as minerals accumulate, which can cause more harm.

That did not happen here. The authors suggested two reasons: the button was made of a relatively inert metal, and its smooth surface likely limited the buildup of debris that usually seeds a stone. They also proposed that the object’s material and position, low in the nasal cavity under the turbinate, kept irritation to a minimum.

These are the authors’ explanations, not tested findings. A single case cannot show why one object causes trouble and another does not, and the authors themselves called for more research on why some nasal foreign bodies go unnoticed for long periods. The PubMed abstract notes that while nasal foreign bodies are common in children, they rarely persist without symptoms into adolescence.

The button still showed its age. Once removed, it had substantial corrosion and biological deposits on its surface, the report said.

Removal turned out to be straightforward. With the teen in a semi-sitting position, which lowers the risk of the object slipping back toward the airway, the team shrank the nasal tissue with a xylometazoline decongestant, numbed the area with lidocaine spray, freed the button with a small hook, and pulled it out with bayonet forceps.

Bleeding was minimal and controlled with saline rinses, and the doctors saw no significant tissue damage afterward. The teen went home with nasal rinses, and a checkup two weeks later found a normal exam.

A good outcome is not guaranteed when an object stays put this long. Had the button gone undetected, the authors wrote, possible long-term complications could have included chronic inflammation, bacterial infection, a hole in the nasal septum, or movement of the object into the airway. Across nasal foreign body cases in general, StatPearls puts the complication rate at about 9%.

Most of these episodes involve much younger children. StatPearls reports that kids ages 2 to 5 are the most likely to put objects in their noses, and the classic warning sign is foul-smelling discharge, usually from one nostril. Some objects are far more dangerous than a snap button: button batteries can cause a hole in the nasal septum in as little as four hours.

For parents, the case is a reminder that a child seeming fine does not prove an object came out. MedlinePlus advises against searching the nose with cotton swabs or other tools and against using tweezers on an object stuck deep inside. It recommends medical care if the object cannot be easily removed, is sharp, or is a button battery or a pair of disc magnets. Anyone unsure whether something is still lodged should check with a clinician.

What was found in the teenager’s nose? A metal snap button about 1 centimeter wide, lodged on the floor of his right nasal cavity beneath the inferior turbinate. He had put it there at age 7.

How was it discovered? By accident. Dental X-rays and cone beam CT done for orthodontic planning showed a round, dense object, and further X-rays, a CBCT scan, and an endoscopic exam confirmed it.

Why didn’t it cause symptoms for so long? The authors think the button’s inert metal, smooth surface, and low position in the nose limited irritation. That explanation is a hypothesis drawn from a single case.

Did a nasal stone form around it? No. Despite more than a decade in place, no rhinolith developed, though the button showed substantial corrosion and biological deposits when removed.

Is it common for objects to stay in the nose this long? No. Nasal foreign bodies are most common in children ages 2 to 5 and often cause symptoms, such as foul-smelling discharge from one nostril, that lead to discovery. Long-standing cases without symptoms are rare.

What should parents do if a child puts something in their nose? MedlinePlus advises against probing with swabs or tools and recommends medical care if the object is not easily removed, is sharp, or is a button battery or paired magnets. If an exam cannot be completed, follow-up matters, since an object may still be there even when a child seems fine.